Coin-operated gum machine



E. A. STEIN COIN-OPERATED GUM MACHINE June 30, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1Filed July 25, 1960 INVENTOR ELMER A. STEIN June 30, 1964 E. A. STEINCOIN-OPERATED GUM MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 25, 1960 INVENTORELMER A. STEIN ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,139,168 CGIN-QFERATED GUMMACHINE Eimer A. Stein, Madison, Wis., assignor to Coan Manufacturing(10., Inc, Madison, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Filed .l'uly 25,196i), Ser. No. 44,985 4 Qiaims. (Cl. 194-71) This invention relates tocoin operated vending machines having magazines for containing articlesof merchandise, and more particularly relates to a multiple magazinemachine for vending packages of gum.

Vending machines for dispensing packages of gum have heretofore beenprovided with pivotally mounted vertical magazines which can be operablytraversed so that a lowermost package of gum in a magazine is preventedfrom moving with the magazine when the latter is traversed along anarcuate path, the package being dispensed from the magazine by thereturn movement of the magazine. The machine of this invention isprovided with a magazine wherein the lowermost package of gum in amagazine moves with the magazine during displacement of the magazineuntil the magazine has been moved clear of a member aifixed to thechassis of the machine which prevents the contents of the magazine fromfalling therefrom, where upon return movement of the magazine thedisplaced lowermost package of gum is brought into abutting relationwith the atfixed member and is operably dispensed from the machine. Theconstruction of the machine of this invention enables packages to bedispensed from any of a plurality of such magazines by an operator ofthe machine simply moving a lever in reciprocal manner. An embodiment ofthe machine of this invention includes a new and improved coin-actuatingmechanism of simplified construction.

It is an object of this invention to provide a coinoperated vendingmachine with a plurality of magazines from which merchandise can bedispensed.

It is another object of this invention to provide a coinoperated vendingmachine wherein the actuating mechanism is of simplified constructionand may be actuated only by coins of proper denomination.

FIGURE 1 is a partially sectioned perspective view of the machine ofthis invention;

FIGURE 2 is an elevation of a portion of the machine of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an elevation view of a portion of the machine of FIGURE 1 inchanged position from the view of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is an elevation view similar to FIGURE 2 showing merchandisebeing dispensed from the machine.

In FIGURE 1 is shown gum vending machine comprised with frame 11 andmagazines 12, 12, 13 and 13', the magazines being mounted in frame 11 bymeans of lugs 14, 14', 15, and 15, respectively. Magazines 12, 12, 13and 13' may be filled with packages of gum, each magazine being filledwith gum of a different kind than that of the other magazines. Todispense gum from a magazine an operator inserts a coin, such as a fivecent piece, into a chute, not shown, which conveys the coin into theslot formed between coin-return handle 64 and guide 65 on the front offrame 11 into the position shown in FIGURE 1. The coin comes to rest andeither handle 16 or 17 can be operated to dispense gum from one of themagazines. Printed or graphic instructions on the front of the machineIt) may be provided to instruct an operator of the machine how todispense gum of a particular kind.

Referring now to FIGURES 2, 3 and 4, if gum is to be dispensed frommagazine 13, lever 17 is moved to the right, as viewed in FIGURES 1-4,so that projection 19 engages depending lug 2t) of magazine 13 anddisplaces magazine 13 to the right against spring biasing means 22 untillowermost gum package 25 in magazine 13 is clear of fixed member 26 andfalls to the bottom of the magazine 27. Upon return of handle 17 tounactuated position by the operator or spring biasing means, not shown,gum package 25 is dispensed from magazine 13 as in FIGURE 4. Fixedmember 26 prevents package 25 from being returned with magazine 13thereby causing package 25 to be unsupported whereupon package 25 fallsinto a dispensing chute and is delivered to the front of the machine.

Movement of handle 17 and rod 17 to the right causes slidable detent 29to be forced downward by the inclined edge of cam 31. Slidable detent 29is supported only by spring tensioning means and is guided in a verticalpath by fixed guides 32, 32 and 33 on machine 19. When slidable detent29 is depressed, cam 34 on rotatable member 35 enters into recess 36 indetent member 29 thereby causing coin feeler member 37 to be moved tothe right under action of tension spring 38 and enabling coin 40 to bemoved into contact with gate member 42 as shown in FIGURE 2. Uponfurther downward movement of slidable member 29, recess 36 is displacedbelow cam 34 so that coin feeler member 37 turns about its point ofcontact on coin 40 thereby forcing the lower engageable end 41 of coinfeeler 37 to the left and away from detent member. When detent member 29is fully depressed the lower end portion thereof comes into contact withand presses against the end extremity of member 42 thereby causingmember 42 to turn about pivot 43 and disengage contact with coin 40thereby permitting coin 40 to fall as shown in FIGURE 3 into the coinbox of the machine. It is to be understood that pivot 43 is affixed toframe 11 of machine 10 whereas pivot 44 is unfixed in absolute positionand connects only coin feeler 37 and rotatable member 35. attached toframe 11 and is free to move in any direction in a vertical planesubject only to forces exerted by connecting members. Thus, when coin 40is dropped into the machine and falls into contact with coin feelermember 37 the latter member may be jarred out of position slightlythereby enabling coin to come into abutting contact immediately withmember 42 there to rest until handle 16 or 17 of the machine isactuated. If coin 40 should be bent and be non-workable the operator ofthe machine can raise coin reject lever 14 thereby enabling coin 40 tobe directed to the left as shown in FIGURE 3 into a coin return chute.It is impossible to actuate the machine while coin return lever 14 israised because lugs 47 and 48 (FIGURE 1) prevent movement of rods 17'and 16. It may be preferred to provide an enclosed coin slot within themachine 10 with feeler member 37 and lever 42 extending therethrough soas to be in operable contact with coin 40. An enclosed coin chute is notshown herein, however, for the sake of clarity.

Detents 5t) and 51 are spring biased and in operable contact with toothportions 52 and 53 respectively of arm 16' and 17 as shown. Oncemovement of handle 16 or 17 is begun the motion must be completed beforereturn movement of the handle can be accomplished. The operation oftooth member and detents 50 and 51 is conventional and forms no part ofthis invention.

To prevent simultaneous movement of .handles 16 and 17 an interlock isprovided. Member 54 is vertically slidable so that only one of rods 17and 16' can be actuated at one time. As shown in FIGURE 1 interlockmechanism 54 when in depressed position clears rod 17' but locks rod16'. In the position shown if rod 16' is moved member 54 is raised tolock out rod 17.

From FIGURE 2 it may be seen that movement of rod 17 to the leftactuates the coin mechanism. of machine 10 in a manner similar to thatdescribed. Magazine 13' is Therefore, coin feeler 37 is not fixedlymoved to the left thereby enabling gum package to be moved clear ofmember 26 as the latter is biased against spring biasing means 22, andgum package 25' is dispensed from the machine by return movement of themagazine 13. Similarly if member 16 is moved to the left magazine 12' isactuated and gum is dispensed therefrom or if member 16 is moved to theright magazine 12 is actuated and gum is dispensed from that magazine.The mechanisms associated with magazines 12 and 12' aresubstantiallymirror images of the mechanisms associated with magazines 13 and 13.

As can be readily understood any plurality of magazines can be actuatedby providing additional members similar to members 17 and 16 disposed incoplanar relation therewith and situated above and below members 16' and17'. Any modification that is necessary to adapt the coin actuatingmechanism shown for use with a greater plurality of magazines than shownwill be obvious to one skilled in the art.

As will be apparent, the operative mechanism of the machine of thisinvention virtually eliminates the possibility of improper coins beingretained in the machine or of the machine being operated when'a coin isnot inserted into the machine. The mechanism is readily adapted to beused with any number of magazines.

' While certain modifications and embodiments of the invention have beendescribed, it is of course to be understood that there are a greatnumber of variations which will suggest themselves to anyone familiarwith the subject matter thereof and it is to be distinctly understoodthat this invention should not be limited except by such limitations asare clearly imposed in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a coin-operated machine, an actuating mechanism comprising incombination a passageway wherein a coin will move by the force ofgravity, a coin feeler member extending into said passageway in toadjacency to a coin obstructed therein, said coin feeler member beingmovable in multiple degrees of motion in a plane, a

, pivotally mounted coin gate extending into said passageway to obstructthe passage of coin when in unactuated position, slidable means movableinto contacting relation with said coin gate thereby to move said coingate and enable said coin to fall into a coin box of said machine, saidslidable means having an engageable hook portion at the lower endextremity thereof and having a cam receiving recess therein, said hookportion being engageable with an end extremity of said coin feelermember, a pivotally mounted arm member, a cam member, said cam memberbeing mounted on said arm member which arm member is pivotally connectedto said coin feeler member, said cam member being operably engageablewith said recess in said slidable member, said cam member causing saidcoin-feeler member to be forced against said coin when said slidablemember is operably displaced, thereby causing said end extremity of saidcoin-feeler member to move from adjacency with said engageable hookportion of said slidable member thereby enabling said slidable member tobe displaced to contact said gate thereby depressing said gate andenabling said coin to drop into the coin box of the machine, means foroperably actuating said slidable means, spring-biasing means forreturning said coin feeler member, said slidable means and said coingate to unactuated position.

2. The actuating mechanism of claim 1, wherein there is provided a coinreturn lever, movement of said coinreturn lever causing a side portionof said coin chute to be opened.

3. In a coin-operated machine, the combination of a frame, a coin chute,a coin arresting gate in said coin chute, a plurality of removableupright magazines for containing stacks of merchandise articles to bedispensed, said magazines being pivotally mounted so as to be movablethrough arcuate paths, each of said magazines comprising a bottom andfour sides two of said sides disposed transverse to the direction ofrotation of said magazines having openings therein, said openings beingdisposed to enable an article of merchandise to be dispensed from saidmagazine by said magazine being rotatively displaced, rotation of saidmagazine causing the lowermost package of merchandise therein to beremoved from adjacency with a fixed member thereby enabling said packageto drop to the bottom of said magazine, return movement of said magazinecausing ejection of the package from the magazine by abutting contactwith said fixed member, means for selectively rotating each two of saidmagazines through an operable arc, said means for rotating saidmagazine, when manually biased in either of two reciprocal directions,by either of two cam surfaces thereon, causing a slidable member to bedisplaced to a position to engage and open the coin arresting gate inthe coin chute of said machine, thereby enabling a coin in said coinchute to pass into the coin box of said machine, said slidable memberhaving a detent portion and having a portion thereof configured as arecess for receiving a cam, a coin feeler member having one endextremity thereof projecting into said coin chute and having the otherend extremity thereof in latching or lockable relation with said detentportion of said slidable member a coin gate lever having an endextending into said coin gate, said coin gate lever pivotally mounted topivot so that said end may move to allow a coin to pass through saidcoin arresting gate, a cam member pivotally mounted to pivotally rotateon the same pivotal axis as said coin gate lever and pivotally connectedto said coin feeler member with a free end extremity thereof in nearadjacency with said cam surface of said slidable member said cam memberand feeler member pivotally connected, downward, movement of saidslidable member providing outward movement of the end of the cam memberwhich is received in said cam portion of said slidable member to therebymove said cam member to move the pivotal connection between said cammember and said coin feeler member outwardly with respect to saidslidable member to thereby move said coin feeler member against a coinin said coin'chute thereby engaging the upper portion of said coinfeeler member with said coin to cause said coin feeler member to pivotabout its pivotal connection with said cam memher to depress and moveoutwardly its lower portion from latching or locking engagement withsaid detent portion of said slidable member, thereby clearing said coinfeeler member of said detent portion of said slidable member andenabling actuation of said coin gate lever by said slidable bearingthereon.

4. The combination of claim 3 wherein a plurality of said means forbiasing said magazines are provided, at-

least one interlock between said means for biasing said magazines,saidinterlock comprising a notch in each of two next adjacent means forbiasing said magazines, a lock member slidably movable into either saidnotch, said member being of such dimension to be disposed clear of onesaid notch only when extending into the other said notch.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

1. IN A COIN-OPERATED MACHINE, AN ACTUATING MECHANISM COMPRISING INCOMBINATION A PASSAGEWAY WHEREIN A COIN WILL MOVE BY THE FORCE OFGRAVITY, A COIN FEELER MEMBER EXTENDING INTO SAID PASSAGEWAY IN TOADJACENCY TO A COIN OBSTRUCTED THEREIN, SAID COIN FEELER MEMBER BEINGMOVABLE IN MULTIPLE DEGREES OF MOTION IN A PLANE, A PIVOTALLY MOUNTEDCOIN GATE EXTENDING INTO SAID PASSAGEWAY TO OBSTRUCT THE PASSAGE OF COINWHEN IN UNACTUATED POSITION, SLIDABLE MEANS MOVABLE INTO CONTACTINGRELATION WITH SAID COIN GATE THEREBY TO MOVE SAID COIN GATE AND ENABLESAID COIN TO FALL INTO A COIN BOX OF SAID MACHINE, SAID SLIDABLE MEANSHAVING AN ENGAGEABLE HOOK PORTION AT THE LOWER END EXTREMITY THEREOF ANDHAVING A CAM RECEIVING RECESS THEREIN, SAID HOOK PORTION BEINGENGAGEABLE WITH AN END EXTREMITY OF SAID COIN FEELER MEMBER, A PIVOTALLYMOUNTED ARM MEMBER, A CAM MEMBER, SAID CAM MEMBER BEING MOUNTED ON SAIDARM MEMBER WHICH